Taking Walking Breaks at Work

This Hourly Habit Can Benefit Your Health in Surprising Ways

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We sit a lot, even though we know it's not good for us. Prolonged sitting (like a normal 9-to-5er is apt to do) can increase the risk of diseases, like diabetes and cancer, as well as death. But a simple change to your daily habits can reduce all of these risks, according to a new study.

The new study, published in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, looked at data for over 3,000 people and found that just two minutes of walking every hour instead of sitting helped mitigate the dangers of prolonged sitting by decreasing your risk of dying by 33 percent.

The bad news: the researchers found that trading two minutes of sitting with two minutes of standing didn't have the same positive effect, although there are still good reasons to stand up for longer periods when you can. In any case, the researchers point out that two minutes of walking every hour really adds up — they estimate that you can burn an extra 400 calories a week by just adding this practice to your day.